Valley Wealth Managers Inc. Increases Position in KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC)

Valley Wealth Managers Inc. increased its stake in shares of KLA Co. (NASDAQ:KLAC) by 3.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 622 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc.’s holdings in KLA were worth $482,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cedar Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of KLA by 77.3% in the 1st quarter. Cedar Wealth Management LLC now owns 39 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 17 shares in the last quarter. Family Firm Inc. purchased a new position in KLA during the 2nd quarter worth $30,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of KLA during the third quarter valued at about $38,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in KLA in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $44,000. Finally, LRI Investments LLC acquired a new stake in KLA in the 1st quarter worth approximately $45,000. Institutional investors own 86.65% of the company’s stock.

KLA Trading Down 4.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:KLAC opened at $614.46 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $721.02 and its 200-day moving average price is $762.59. KLA Co. has a 1 year low of $527.11 and a 1 year high of $896.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $82.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65, a current ratio of 2.13 and a quick ratio of 1.48.

KLA (NASDAQ:KLAC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The semiconductor company reported $7.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.03 by $0.30. The business had revenue of $2.84 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.75 billion. KLA had a net margin of 28.92% and a return on equity of 105.16%. The company’s revenue was up 18.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $5.74 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that KLA Co. will post 30.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KLA Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th will be issued a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.11%. This is a boost from KLA’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.45. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. KLA’s payout ratio is presently 26.48%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of KLA from $950.00 to $870.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on KLA from $800.00 to $950.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. UBS Group cut their price objective on KLA from $900.00 to $765.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on KLA from $890.00 to $750.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Susquehanna cut their price target on shares of KLA from $680.00 to $675.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 11th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $802.90.

KLA Company Profile

KLA Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the design, manufacture, and marketing of process control, process-enabling, and yield management solutions for the semiconductor and related electronics industries worldwide. It operates through three segments: Semiconductor Process Control; Specialty Semiconductor Process; and PCB and Component Inspection.